Bell-buoy.



A. LINDSTROM.

BELL BUOY.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 29, 1912. 1 072 130, Patented Sept. 2, 1913. 2 SHBBTSvSHEET 1.

COLUMBIA PLANocm/wn co.,w^5u|NuToN. inc,

A. LINDSTROM.

BELL BUOY.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. ze, 1912.

Patented Sept. 2, 1913.

2 BHEBTB-BHBBT witg/wow ANDREW LINDSTROM, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

BELL-BUOY.

Application filed January 29,

To alt iti/tom t may 2o/wcm lle it known that l, ANnnnw LiNnstrnoM, citizen ot the United States, residing at San .Francisco7 in the county o'l San Francisco and State ol California, have invented certain new and usetul Improvements in .Bell-Buoys, oit which the following is a speci tication. A

lriy invention relates to bell buoys, and particularly to that special class ot' buoys wherein the bell or other sounding mechanism is operated by a float, disposed within the buoy7 the lloat being actuated by the `rise and fall oit the waves.

(.)nc object of my invention is the provision oit a buoy particularly adapted to sound both a submerged and a surface signal.

.fr further object is to provide a buoy with submerged and surface signal bells and oppositcly disposed hammers operated by the rise and tall of a float located within the buoy.

A tui-ther object, is to provide a buoy of such contour that its rise or fall will be retarded relatively to the rise and t'all et the waves, so that the internal float shall secure a maximum of movement.

A further object is to provide means whereby the hammers operating; upon the bells shall be positively actuated by the rise and fall of the float, and whereby the hammers shall normally be held in a position away from the bellJ but may be tripped by the actuation of the float to cause a signal to be struck upon the col-actingbell.

Still another object is to provide a very simple and ett'eetive form ot' buoy of this character liaviiigl a minimum ol parts and being so situated that the bell soundingl mechanism may be easily repaired or readjustcd when desired.

Other objects will be apparent in the course oit the following` description.

My invention is illustrated in the accompartying' drawings, wherein:

VFigure l is a longitudinal sectional view of my improved bell buoy; Fig. 2 is a cross setiztional view on the line 2-2 et Fig. l; Fig. E is an enlarged detail transverse section on the line 8 opt Fig. l. Fig. 4t is an enlarged sectional view ol the lower end ot the buoy shown in Fig. l, the section beine` taken in the same plane as in Fig. 1; Fig.

t) is a perspective detail View ot the lower rage; hug. t3 is a side elevation, partly seetional, ot one of the hammers and its eo-act- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. f, It 9:1212.

1912. SC1'iftlN0.G74,093.

ing tail member; Fig'. 7 is a perspective view olf the springr tor holdintgr the hammers out ol contact; with the bell.

Referring' to these ligures7 2 designates the body ot the buoy, which is made preiterably of sheet metal and which has the form olf an elongated ovoid. ln other words, while the buoy body tapers toward its ends. it is largest toward the lowest portion thereot. The buoy body is open at its opposite ends, and passing' through the body is a tube :i which is also open at its ends. llxtcnding longitiulinally along the inner sui-tace ol' the tube 3 are a plurality ot tracks 4t whose, specitic construction will be later described.

The upper and lower ends of the tube 25 are connected to the upper and ,lower ends of the buoy body 2 by means ot. rivets, bolts or in any other suitable or desired way, and mounted upon the upper and lower ends oit the body are the bell cages 5 and (3. '.lhese are substantially alike in :toi-m, and each cage consists o'tf a central portion having' radiating curved arms which are riveted to the adjacent. end oit' the buoy body. rl`he nage 54 is perforated at its cen ter, and pass`- ing through it is a headed bolt 7 which passes through the bell S. Nuls engage the bolt, 7 and hold the bolt and the bell in proper relation to the cage. the cage has at its center a downwardly projecting;- eye t), within which is disposed a bushing,l llt). 'lhrough this bushing` passes the shackle of an anchor chain. This bushing prevents the material of the cage :trom being worn away by the action ol' the anchor chain, the bushv ing' being renewable whenever desired. lf)isposed at the center ot the inside `tace ot" the cage G .is a stud bolt ll upon which is mounted a bell '12, the stud bolt passino' through the center oil the bell and being;l serew-threaded tor engagement with the nuts lll. .lhe bell is held separate trom the cage by means oit' an annular head tl termed upon the bolty ll.

fl)isposed within the tube 3 and travelingl vertically upon the tracks le is a c vliiulrical tloat 11.5 which is jrire'terably termed oit sheet metal. This float. is guided upon the tracks l by means of rollers lt which are mounted upon the tloatl and project laterally beyond the circumference thereo't and engage the tracks It. Disposed in the upper and .lower ends of the tube 3 are pulleys 1T and 1S, both having practically the same construction and over which a cable or flexible connection 19 passes. At one end, this flexible connection is connected to the float 15 by means of a spring 20 and an eye 21 riveted or otherwise attached to the upper end of the float 15, while at its other end the cable 19 is connected to a rod 22 which is rigidly attached by means of flanges 23 to the bottom of the float and depends therefrom, the lowerI end of the rod being formed with an eye to which the cable 19 is attached. The spring 2O tends to keep the cable 19 at all'times taut, so that the cable will at all times fric tionally engage the pulleys 17 and 18 and rotate the same in one or the other direction as the float 15 rises or falls.

Each of the pulleys 17 and 18 is designed to operate a hammer striking` mechanism, the pulley 17 operating the hammer striking mechanism for thebell 8 while the pulley 18 operates the striking mechanism for the bell 12.

Generally speaking, each of the pulleys 17 and 18 is provided with laterally projecting pins v-.ihich engage with the tail of a spring actuated hammer which is normally held fromcontact with the bell, but which when struck by a pin upon the corresponding pulley is retracted until released, whereupon it springs into contact with the bell and rings it. In detail, the preferable construction is as follows: The pulley 17 is mounted upon a cross bar 24 attached to the tube 3 in any suitable manner. A pivot bolt 25 passes through the cross bar 24 and upon this bolt the pulley 17 is mounted, the pulley being held upon the bolt by means of a cotter pin 26, or in any other suitable manner. Also passing through the bar 24C is a pin 27 which forms the bearing for a pair of hammers 28 and 29, each hammer at its upper end being cleft or bifurcated as to 30 to receive between the parts an angular member 31. The pin 27 passes through the bifurcated ends of the hammers 28 and 29 and also through the members 31. Each member 31 has an inwardly projecting tail 32 and also a nose 33 extending down over the outer face of the corresponding hammer. A spring 34 is mounted within the bifurcated end of the hammer and projects upwardly and inwardly against the face of the tail 32, so that the noses 33 are normally forced against the face of the hammer. Tt will be seen that with this construction, when the tail 32 is moved in one direction the hammer will be moved with the tail, but

when the tail 32 is moved in the oppositev direction it will move independently of the hammer. Coiled springs 35a are connected at one end to each hammer, while at its opposite end each spring is connected to thel ,mers 28 and 29.

order to hold each hammer in a normal position out of contact with the bell, I provide for each pair of hammers a spring 35. This spring, as illustrated, is in the form of aleaf spring, one end of which is supported by means of the bolt holding the bell in place, the other end extending into engagement with the corresponding pair of ham- P'referably, this spring 35, as illustrated in Fig. 7, is enlarged at its free end so as to form a loop 36 adaptedto receive and surround the heads of both hanimers, the hammers being kept separate from each other by means of a rearwardly extending plate 37 attached to the free extremity of the spring and extending at right angles to the face of the spring. This plate 37 is co-extensive with the stroke of the hammers, thus preventing any contact of the hammers with each other and therefore any blocking of the action of the hammers.

As will be seen from Fig. 2, the pulley wheel (either 17 or 18) which actuates t-he pairs of hammers, is disposed between each pair of hammers, and carries upon it alternately spaced, oppositely projecting actuating pins 38 and 39. kThe pins 38 project on the one side of the wheel, while the pins 39 project on the other side of the wheel and are set alternately to the pins 38. Thus, when the wheel is rotated in the proper direction, the pin 38 will engage the hammer 28, while the pin 39 will engage the hammer 29, or rather, these pins will engage i the lower end of the buoy to be alternately retracted and alternately released. Tt will be seen that the hammers at the upper end of the buoy are reversely set to the hammers at the lower end of the buoy, and as a consequence when the float rises the pins upon the pulley wheel 17 will simply act to oscillate the members 31, which will not a'lilect the corresponding hammers. the surface signal will not sound, but upon a downward movement of the float the movement of the pulley wheels 17 and 18 will be reversed, and as a consequence the pins upon the wheel 17 will' positively actuate the hammers co-acting with the bell 8, while the hammers co-acting with the bell 12 will not be operated.

1While do not desire to be limited to any special form of the tracks 4;, T preferably provide two oppositely disposed U-shaped tracks and two o-ppositely disposed flat tracks, and also preferably provide these tracks with stops 40, at the upper and lower ends, designed to limit the upward and downward movement of the float l5. The upper end oit the tube 3 is protected by means oit a covering plate tl. This plate extends across the upper end ol the tube -S, but is, oit course, to be slotted to accomniodate the shanks oit the hammers and to permit the movement of the hammers. lhese slots, of course, permit air to pass out ol? the upper end oi the tube 3, but the covering 1lil prevents any large quantity oit water passing down through the tube and :falling upon the lloat l5, as would occur where a wave would break over the buoy.

l/Vhile my improved buoy will operate to a degree with only one bell hammer or clapper at each end, it :liar pret'orable to have at each end a pair oit' clapper.1 and set the pins 38 and 89 alternately on opposite sides ol the actuating wheels, as thereby the dis tance between the pins may be decreased so that when one pin is on the point of engaging the trip or tail ot one hammer, the next succeedingpin 'is on the point ol' engaging the trip or tail ot' the other hammer. rlhere is thus very little lost motion between the tripping pins on the wheels 17 and 1S and the harmners. The pins 23S and Salt) are so spaced trom cach other that the rise or fall ot the float through about three inches would cause at least one actuation of one ol the hammers. As the normal rise and fall of the float will be about six inches, it will be seen that there will be at least one actuation oit each hammer during a normal .reciprocation oft the float.

Attention may here be called to the lact that by reason of the peculiar i'orm ot' the tloat body l the buoy itself has a relatively small. li'tting power. Thus, a wave reaches the buoy, the buoy does not immediately rise, but remains relatively stationary, so that the water rises inside oit the buoy body, raising the tloat with it. 'When the wave recedes, the buoy docs not immediately drop, but the water inside drops, causing the float to sink upon itself under weight.

My improved buoy is simple in construetion, easily repaired, and is positive in its action. It will be seen that when a high sea is running, the area of movement of the float l5 will be relatively large, and that in this case a number of rapid strokes will be sounded upon both the submerged and the surit'ace signal bells. .Even Where the sea is not high, however, and the waves are normal, there will be a constant sounding ol the bell, which is not the case with bell buoys in which the signal bells are sounded by the rocking of the buoy.

It will also be noted that not only are the bells sounded upon a rise and fall ot' the 'float l5 but that the hammers being free to move will be impelled against the bells by any lateral or rocking movenlent ot the buoy. rlhe hanuners are so supported away irom the bell by means of the springs 35 that when the buoy rocks in one direction the hammers will be thrown out against the retraetive 'l'oree o'l the springs 235, and when the buoy rocks in the other direction the hammers will be thrown inward against the bells.

lt will, ot course, be umlerstood that many minor modilications may be made in the construction without departing :lrom the spirit olf the invention.

it desired, the, submarine bell can be dis posed deeper under water by n'iaking the tube il extend downwmfd to a greater extent as shown in dotted lines `Fig. l.

Ilaring thus described my invention. what is claimed is:

l. bell buoy, inohuling a hollow buoyant body open at opposite ends, signal bells carried at opposite ends, a tloat disposed within the body and vertically movable independently thereof, oppositely disposed pulleys mounted in the Isaid body, a flexible connection passing over said pulleys, meehanism actuated by the rotation o'l one ot said pulleys in one direction to ring the adjacent bell and mechanism actuated by the rotation oit the other pulley .in the, opposite direction to ring the other ol said bells.

2. A. bell buoy, including a hollow buoyant body open at opposite ends, a tube extending through the body, signal bells earried at opposite ends ot. the tube, a iloat disposed within and guided by said tube., said tloat being vertically movable independently of the body, pulley wheels disposed at opposite ends` oi the tube and having laterally projecting pins upon their circumlferential margins, and n'ieans 'tor transmitting motion oit' the float to said wheels, bell hammers located at. opposite ends ol the hollow body, and tripping devices adapted to be actuated by the pins to release said hannners.

In a bell buoy, a shell open at both ends, a vertically movable float disposed within said shell, upper and .lower wheels having projections, a 'flexible connection passing over said wheels and engaging said float, upper and lower bells, and ripper and lower hammers operatively engaged by said wheels upon a movement oil? the `float in either direction.

` et. In a bell buoy, a shell open at both ends, a float disposed within the shell, upper and lower wheels having prdjections. a tlexible connection passing over said wheelsI and attached to said tloat, ripper and lower bells, upper and lower han'imers tor striking the said bells, and devices whereby a movement ogt the wheels in one direction will cause the projections on the wheel at one end oi the buoy to opera tively engage its corresponding hammer and the projection on the other wheel to pass its corresponding hammer without actuating the same, and whereby upon a downward movement otl the float the hammer at the other end of the ioat will be actuated in a like manner.

5. In a bell buoy, a shell open at both ends, cages attached to said shell at opposite ends, a bell mounted in each Cage, a vertically movable lioat disposed withinthe buoy, upper and lower wheels mounted within the buoy and having projections, a flexible connection passing over said wheels and connected to the float whereby the wheels may be rotated in one or the other direction as the float rises or falls, and hammers mounted in proximity to the bells and adapted to be operatively engaged by the projections on the wheels whereby the hammers may be actuated. l

6. In a bell buoy, a shell open at both ends, a float disposed within the shell., oppositely disposed wheels, a iexible connection passing over said wheels and connecting with the tloat whereby the wheels may be rotated in one or the other direction as the float rises or falls, opposit-ely disposed studs ro'ectinofrom each of said wheels a air of hammers pivotally mounted adjacent to each wheel, bells with which said hammers engage7 and members, one for each hammer, pivoted upon the pivotal axes of the hammers, each of said members having an arm extending approximately parallel to the hammer shank and engaging therewith for movement in one direction and prohibiting the hammer from movement in the other direotion, the other arm of each ot said members extending out at approximately right angles to the hammer shank and engaged by said studs, the hammers and the operating members connecting therewith being disposed one on each side ot' said wheel, and the studs onone side of the wheel being disposed in staggered relation to the studs upon the opposite side of the wheel.

In testimony whereof, I atlix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ANDREW LINDSTROM. [11. s]

Witnesses:

Hoei-I KENNEDY, HUGH MGLANE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

